Interstate 29 (I-29) is a north–south Interstate Highway in the Midwestern United States that begins in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. It travels through the

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

and St. Joseph metropolitan areas before exiting the state and entering

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

. Almost all of I-29 in Missouri lies in an area called the

Platte Purchase The Platte Purchase was a land acquisition in 1836 by the United States government from American Indian tribes of the region. It comprised lands along the east bank of the Missouri River and added to the northwest corner of the state of Misso ...

that was not originally part of Missouri when the state entered the Union in 1821.

Route description

I-29 begins at

I-70 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to I-695 and Maryland Route 570 (MD 570) in Woodlawn, just outside Baltimore, Maryland. I-70 appr ...

in a concurrency with

I-35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexico–Uni ...

and U.S. Route 71 (US 71) at the Downtown Loop. It crosses over the

Missouri River The Missouri River is a river in the Central United States, Central and Mountain states, Mountain West regions of the United States. The nation's longest, it rises in the eastern Centennial Mountains of the Bitterroot Range of the Rocky Moun ...

via the Bond Bridge. I-29 and I-35 separate in northern Kansas City, with I-29 turning northwest with US 71 running concurrent with it. It passes near

Kansas City International Airport Kansas City International Airport (originally Mid-Continent International Airport) is a public airport in Kansas City, Missouri, located northwest of Downtown Kansas City in Platte County, Missouri., effective May 15, 2025. The airport was ...

and near there is concurrent with

I-435 Interstate 435 (I-435) is an Interstate Highway beltway that encircles much of the Kansas City metropolitan area within the states of Kansas and Missouri in the United States. Route description I-435, a loop route of I-35, is long and i ...

. I-29 then exits the Kansas City area. It enters the eastern portion of St. Joseph while downtown St. Joseph is served by I-229, a loop of I-29. North of St. Joseph, US 71 separates from I-29 and heads north. I-29 then passes through rural areas of northwestern Missouri on a southeast-to-northwest alignment. After Exit 79 which serves U.S. 159, I-29 descends a hill to the valley of the Missouri River and the base of the

Loess Hills The Loess Hills are a formation of wind-deposited loess soil in the westernmost parts of Iowa and Missouri, and the easternmost parts of Nebraska and Kansas, along the Missouri River. Geology The Loess (, , or ) Hills are generally located be ...

, and remains mainly flat for the remainder of its route in

, its entire route in

and for about 35 miles in

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

. I-29 then crosses into

north of Rock Port, approximately south of

Council Bluffs Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The population was 62,799 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, te ...

History

I-70 east to I-435 south was alternate a via route for traffic to void the 3 at-grade crossings. During the 2019 Midwestern US floods, I-29 in Missouri was closed to traffic in both directions from St. Joseph to

Council Bluffs, Iowa Council Bluffs is a city in and the county seat of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, Pottawattamie County, Iowa, United States. The population was 62,799 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the state's List of cities in Iowa, te ...

when the highway got flooded. It reopened to traffic by October 2019.

Exit list

Auxiliary route

I-29 has one auxiliary route in Missouri: *: A bypass around the west side of St. Joseph

References

Explanatory notes

Citations

External links

Interstate-Guide.com
{{state detail page browse, type=I, route=29, state=Missouri, stateafter=Iowa 29 Missouri Transportation in Jackson County, Missouri Transportation in Clay County, Missouri Transportation in Platte County, Missouri Transportation in Buchanan County, Missouri Transportation in Andrew County, Missouri Transportation in Holt County, Missouri Transportation in Atchison County, Missouri Transportation in the Kansas City metropolitan area